I am not really sure why, but I always feel
the need (or maybe it’s just a habit) to start my posts off by explaining where
the thoughts of them originated from…
So, with that being said…
Last night as I was praying, an interesting
thought came into my mind:
It is natural to have desires, right? But
what about when we take it upon ourselves to go after those desires?
Obviously there is nothing wrong with that,
if we are being led by God and He has compelled us to go after that desire, but
what if it is something that is not meant for us?
I do this a lot. I see something that I want
and then I go after it. But as I was contemplating this last night…the thread
of my thoughts just kept getting deeper and deeper:
When I do this – when I go after something that
I want that is not meant for me – I am creating myself out to be a thief.
I am robbing so many situations on so many
levels.
I am robbing the person who this thing was
initially intended for.
I am robbing myself by settling for something
that was not meant for me, and possibly ruining or delaying the chances of me
getting what really is intended for me.
And I am robbing God of the glory He would be
receiving if only I had waited on Him and allowed Him to bring to me what He
has for me in His perfect time.
This “thing” could be anything really. It
could be a job, a title, a hobby, a relationship, or even a material thing.
For example: It could be a position at
church. I absolutely love being a youth leader at church…but what if one day I
decided I wanted to quit that and go help out in the nursery? I really think I
would be awesome with the little tykes…but everyone feels differently because,
if we’re being honest…holding a baby makes me as nervous and uncomfortable as
swimming with sharks: One wrong move and someone is feelin’ the pain! But for
some reason, that is what I want! No more deep theological discussions with
teenage girls whose minds are like sponges, soaking up every piece of knowledge
and wisdom they discover about our Creator…bring on baby slobber and snack
time!
Okay…this is a poor example…because my heart
is just not in the nursery…but that’s because I know that just isn’t where God
wants me…but what if I just decided it was all of a sudden what I was going to
go for?
I would be taking up a position in the
nursery and ruining the chances of someone helping out there who would most
likely be a much better fit than me! Someone who would know exactly what to do
to get an infant to fall asleep or how to handle the thing when it just wont
stop crying!
Not only that…I would be robbing the junior
high and high school girls of being blessed by my charming, exquisite presence.
Hah…kidding…but I would be robbing them of me being there for them. If I know
that working with that age group is really where my heart is, then I know that
Christ has put that desire there for a reason, and that is where He wants to
use me! And if I ignored that, then I would be robbing those girls of learning
a lesson that God may want to teach them through me! And not only that…I would
be robbing myself of what God TRULY has for me, and I would be robbing God of
receiving the glory from those girls and me, for using me!
That kind of got confusing in my head…but
does it make sense?
With all that being said – God is going to
accomplish His work regardless of my stupid, off-track decisions! If He wants a
message to be delivered – He will make sure the intended recipient gets it,
whether I am involved or not – but He WANTS me. THAT is the point.
1 Corinthians 12:17-19
“If the whole body were an eye, where would
be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? But now
God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. And
if they were all one member, where would the body be?”
(Remember…this was just an example of the
type of thing I am talking about…I did not and have not…and possibly will
not…EVER…have a desire to quit working with teenage girls and start helping out
in the nursery…not saying I would not ever help out there if someone was
needed…but…let’s just get it clear that NO ONE should ever think it is a good
idea for me to help out with infants……………..EVER.)
So that was last nights’ realization…
Then tonight as I was praying another
interesting concept came into my mind:
God not only allows certain things to happen,
but He ORDAINS things to happen as well…
I don’t want to want things that aren’t meant
for me. And as long as I follow Christ and commit my ways to Him…He will make
it very clear what is and is not for me. And even more so, He will bless me
with what IS meant for me.
I want all of my fleshly and selfish desires
to be removed from me…and I want them to be replaced with whatever God wants
for me. Then I know that I could never go wrong! I will be living a life that
glorifies Him no matter what.
I guess it was just a reminder that God has
it all under control. And for someone as inconsistent and indecisive as
me…NOTHING could possibly bring me greater peace than knowing that I am in
God’s hands and He never lets go.
Proverbs 16:9, “The heart of man plans his
way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”
